Summit Hill Sons of American Legion, food pantry supplying 130 turkeys for needy
AMY ZUBEK/TIMES NEWS Members of the Sons of American Legion Post 316 present Rose Marie Armon, center, director of the Summit Hill Food Pantry, with a check for $1,600 to purchase 130 frozen turkeys for families in need in Summit Hill. Presenting the check are Stan Karnish, commander; and Joe Zubek, finance officer. Missing from photo are SAL members Jude Yuricheck, Kevin Collevechio, Paul Yuricheck, and Sam Degiglio.
More than 100 Summit Hill families in need will have a turkey on their table this Thanksgiving.
That is because of Sons of American Legion Post 316, Summit Hill, and the borough's food pantry, which teamed up again this year to help families put a full meal on their tables Nov. 26.
On Wednesday officers of the SAL presented Rose Marie Armon, director of the Summit Hill Food Pantry, with a check for $1,600 to offset the cost of purchasing 130 frozen turkeys for the holiday.
Armon said the money will help cover the cost of the frozen birds, as well as offset some of the costs for stuffing.
"We are always grateful to the SALs," she said, noting that the Sons have been donating money for frozen turkeys on Thanksgiving since before she became director in 1997.
"It is absolutely marvelous. They're very special people."
Joe Zubek, SAL finance officer, said the donation is the organization's annual community project.
"We're glad to be able to help during these hard economic times," added Stan Karnish, commander of the SAL.
To raise the money for this donation, the group holds fundraisers throughout the year.
When the program began, 55 families received food packages for Thanksgiving. Now, it has grown to nearly 130 families.
The food pantry is currently housed in the basement of the former St. Paul's United Church of Christ, which closed its doors to parishioners two years ago.
Armon explained that the pantry is still operating at the facility.
The pantry is a division of Shepherd House, an entity that contracts with government agencies to receive state and federal funding to help the needy. It provides some nonperishable food items, but the majority of food distributed in the borough is donated by Summit Hill residents.
The volunteers at the pantry are thankful for the generosity of the churches and organizations in the Summit Hill community because each group has donated either food, money or time to help feed families in need over the years.
Anyone interested in donating food items or money to the Summit Hill Food Pantry or becoming involved with the group, should contact Armon or the pastor of their church.
